The NBA aims to reform the draft lottery to discourage teams from tanking and is also looking to enhance its penalties for teams that manipulate player availability and rotations to lose games, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
The Utah Jazz were fined $500,000 in February for actions deemed “conduct detrimental to the league” after they sat star players Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. in the fourth quarters of consecutive games.
Under the proposed changes, the NBA could impose fines reaching millions of dollars. Additionally, it might move a team’s draft pick to the end of the lottery or the first round, or even remove it altogether, Vardon reports. The league is considering three lottery reform proposals discussed at this week’s Board of Governors meeting, though none are expected to fully eliminate tanking on their own. The intention appears to be to implement tougher penalties alongside these lottery changes.
“Without stricter penalties, you could still have crazy behavior,” a league source mentioned to The Athletic. “You need drastic measures so that teams think twice about tanking. If a team is caught, the penalties should show other teams that it’s not worth the risk.”
Details about this proposal are still limited, but it seems the NBA wants an anti-tanking policy similar to its player-participation rules, which include specific guidelines and escalating penalties for repeated violations. This means any anti-tanking actions would likely begin with fines and could escalate to losing draft picks or forfeitures.
The NBA Board of Governors is set to meet again in May to discuss and vote on these matters.